The Leninsky District Court of Krasnodar sentenced the former executive director of Open Russia to 4 years in a penal colony in a case of cooperation with an «undesirable» organization (Article 284.1 of the Criminal Code). This was reported by the press service of the courts of the region and the politician's associates.
The prosecutor asked him for five years in a penal colony.
Pivovarov's 30 posts on Facebook became the reason for the criminal case. In addition, he is charged with organizing the Free People forum in Nizhny Novgorod and one repost about collecting donations for the election campaign of Krasnodar activist Yana Antonova.
Pivovarov was detained at the end of May 2021, four days after he liquidated Mikhail Khodorkovsky's Open Russia. The organization was not recognized as «undesirable», but the Prosecutor General's Office included the Civic Movement and OR (Otkrytaya Rossia), also associated with Khodorkovsky, in the list of Open Russia.
The oppositionist was going to fly to Warsaw from Pulkovo. Pivovarov went through customs, the plane had already begun taxiing when it was stopped, and the police detained the politician. Then Pivovarov was transferred to Krasnodar, where the court sent him to a pre-trial detention center. The politician himself connected his criminal case with the then upcoming elections to the State Duma.